On the 5th of August, 36 teams will depart on a 700km journey through the Queensland Tropics, an area of Australia that has never before been visited by XPD. Although the expedition format race will push competitors to their physical and mental limits, they will take, at least, some comfort in the fact that the beauty of the area will offset some of the pain of racing for 9 days.

The boys and I are squeezing in a four minute Tabata training session (well, I am, they are my "drill sergeants"). My husband is away, and we have 20 minutes before we have to leave for soccer practice. I've been at work all day. And I am in training. My training schedule requires creativity, as does anyones, but especially those who work "normal" hours while parenting...

I was truly happy to have the work. By the time our extended vacation to New Zealand turned to a permanent move, my family's savings was running a bit low. We were getting pretty close to the time where money-in needed to equal money-out and I'd have taken almost any job that paid me. The fact that this one came with a helicopter commute

In little over a week, 24 teams will set off from the startof Africa's toughest multi-discipline event, the 450-kilometre Expedition Africa adventure race. Hosted in the Kingdom of Swaziland, Expedition Africa will challenge the fitness, skills, mental strength, endurance and navigation of all participants.

It's not enough that athletes must travel through six countries, 10 turnpoints, and 1,038 kilometres, all over one of the world's most difficult to navigate mountain ranges, for the first time in the Red Bull X-Alps history, they are introducing a Prologue.